Congolese group ‘decapitates’ 42
Jomav out: protesters
BENI, Congo, March 26, (Agencies): A Congolese militia group has decapitated 42 policemen after ambushing them in an increasingly violent region where the UN is searching for missing American and Swedish investigators, a local official said Saturday.
Members of the Kamwina Nsapu militia staged the attack between the cities of Tshikapa and Kananga in Central Kasai province on Friday, according to Kasai Assembly President Francois Kalamba. The militia members freed six policemen because they spoke the local Tshiluba language, he said.
Kasai Gov Alexis Nkande
Myopompa
said investigations were underway.
Large-scale violence erupted in the Kasai region in August when security forces killed the militia’s leader. More than 400 people have been killed and more than 200,000 displaced since then, according to the UN.
The UN in recent days reported the discovery since January of more than two dozen mass graves in three Kasai provinces. And five videos have emerged in recent weeks that appear to show Congolese soldiers firing on militia members.
3 soldiers dead in Mali:
Local officials in Mali say three soldiers have been killed and four others injured in an attack by armed men on a military post in the country’s north.
One official said Saturday that Friday night’s attack took place in the village of Almoustarat, about 150 kms (93 miles) north of Gao. Another official confirmed the toll of dead and injured, saying the attackers left with military vehicles and weapons. He said French forces deployed to the area.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they feared for their security.
The area where Almoustarat is located is frequented by drug traffickers and jihadist groups, notably al-Mourabitoun.
Islamic extremists took control of northern Mali in 2012. Though a French-led intervention drove them from strongholds in 2013, attacks continue.
Refugees OK’d to work:
East Africa’s regional bloc said Saturday it gradually will allow the hundreds of thousands of Somali refugees sheltering in its countries to work and will include them in planning efforts.
It is a step forward for nations like Kenya, which hosts the world’s largest refugee camp and where refugees are not allowed to work, but it’s not enough, said an Amnesty International expert on refugees, Victor Nyamori.
“It must be backed up by concrete action,” he said. East African countries already are signatories of UN treaties that say refugees should be allowed to work but that has not been put into practice, he said. Only Uganda seems to have progressive legislation to let refugees work and settle, he said.
Call for Vaz to quit:
Thousands of protesters in Guinea Bissau’s capital on Saturday demanded President Jose Mario Vaz step down to resolve a political crisis that has paralysed the coup-prone West African country.
Protesters marched through Bissau’s streets lined with hedges and palm trees singing and shouting “Jomav out!”, using an abbreviation for the president’s name. The protest followed a smaller one two weeks ago also demanding that Vaz quit.
The former Portuguese colony has not convened parliament for more than a year and public anger is growing at the failure of regionally-mediated talks to resolve deep rivalries within the political elite.
Nigerian officials summoned:
Nigerian lawmakers on Saturday summoned the attorney general, accountant general, minister of interior and four companies to appear before a committee of parliamentarians over allegations that revenues were withheld from the immigration service.
The companies performed services for the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in public-private partnerships, a committee of lawmakers in the upper chamber of parliament chaired by senator Solomon Adeola were told by the head of the NIS.
The services, provided between 2012 and 2016, included the production of e-passports and expatriate residence permits.